The present invention is directed to a process for generating spatiotemporal patterns in a chemical reaction and the device for producing and observing these patterns. In particular, the present invention is directed to a process and device for the creation of spatiotemporal patterns by feeding the materials into a reactor in a manner so that convective motion does not interfere with the chemical pattern achieved during the reaction. The process and reactor of the present invention has specific utility in the study of various spatial patterns of chemical reactions to understand the particular mechanism of the reaction and also as a means for concentrating highly desirable chemical intermediates in a specific area of the solution so that these chemical materials may be extracted in greater concentrations. Specifically, the process and apparatus may be utilized in biological methods whrein small amounts of highly valuable enzymes are produced and are difficult to seperate because of their low concentration.
In the discussion of the process and apparatus of the present invention, specific reference will be made to the Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction system which has been studied for a number of years in an attempt to understand the formation of chemical spatial structures (mainly chemical waves) formed in a chemical reaction. For a detailed description of that work, see Vidal et al., "Etude . . . Oscillant", J. Physique, 47, pp 1999-2009, Nov. 1986, herein incorporated by reference.
Many experiments on spatial self organization in chemical systems have yeilded spiral waves and concentric ring patterns. Those experiments were conducted in closed reactors. Hence, the system evolved irreversibly and uncontrollably toward thermodynamic equilibrium. The transient nature of the spatial patterns and the lack of a well-defined controlled parameter complicates the interpretation of those experiments. About a decade ago, the CSTR (continuous flow stirred tank reactor) replaced closed reactors in experiments on well mixed oscillating chemical reactions. Subsequently a wide variety of new dynamical phenomena were discovered in the study of these oscillating chemical reactions.
The present invention is directed to an annular gel reactor which can serve as a tool for the systematic study of the spatial patterns generated in these chemical reactions. The gel in the reactor of the present invention prevents the occurrence of convective motion in the reaction. Covective motion has plagued previous studies of chemical pattern formation.